DENVER - Dillon Gee is not the hardest thrower in the Mets rotation and maybe one of the least heralded arms in the organization. But over the last year he may be their best pitcher.
Sunday, the Mets new stopper tossed six scoreless innings and snapped a three-game losing streak with a 5-1 win over the Rockies at Coors Field.
'I can go back the first time I saw Dillon Gee. To me he was the consummate pitcher,' Terry Collins said. 'Even though his fastball was an average fastball, he knew how to use it. He used both sides of the plates, he knew how to throw up, he knew how to throw in, but his offspeed stuff was the stuff that separated him. All he's done is continue to improve.
'Dillon Gee is a guy you are always gonna say at end of the year, 'Gosh this guy won 15 games' or 'Gosh he won 16 games.' It's what he is,' the Mets manager said. 'He's a real, real good major league pitcher.'
And Sunday, he was the Mets' ace.
Gee was the first Mets starter to go five innings in the last four games and the first starter to keep the Rockies' lineup scoreless through six. Gee scattered six hits, walked one and struck out five. He has now pitched a career-high 16 straight scoreless innings.
The Mets (16-14) leave Denver with some signs of life, despite losing the series to the Rockies (19-13) 3-1. They won in April by riding strong pitching and eeking out runs with an anemic offense. So far on this road trip, however, the Mets bats have come to life. Most importantly the heart of the lineup -- David Wright, Curtis Granderson and Chris Young -- combined to go 19-of-50 (.380) in the four-game series.
Sunday, Wright, Young, Granderson, Lucas Duda and Daniel Murphy each drove in a run. Murphy and Young had two hits. Juan Lagares, in his third game back from the disabled list, , went 3-for-5 with two runs scored, extending his hitting streak to 13 games. He is hitting .338.
Now, the Mets head to Miami hoping to put together that hitting with the strong pitching that had gotten them through the first month of the season.
The Mets starting pitching struggled in the hitter-friendly Coors Field against the Rockies' red-hot lineup. Before this series started here Thursday, the Mets were the only team in baseball that had every starter go five innings in every start through the first 26 games.
In the first three games here, Bartolo Colon, Zack Wheeler and Jenrry Mejia gave up 25 runs. Coming into this series, Mets starters had given up 27 runs in their last 10 starts.
Gee was the first Mets starter to get through the fifth inning in the last four games and the first starter to keep the Rockies' lineup, which was averaging over nine runs against the Mets in this series, scoreless through six.
Gee has now thrown at least six innings in 27 of his last 29 starts dating back to May 30, 2013. That was something of a turning point for Gee. A finesse pitcher who relies on his command, the 28-year old had missed the second half of the 2012 season and he struggled to rediscover that and get deep into games early in 2013.
'I remember that start and I just remember that Dillon came out that day with a different mindset, he was going to beat the Yankees that day,' said Anthony Recker, who caught Gee in that May 30, 2013 start. 'He got to the fifth inning and he just willed his way through. He was confident.'
The Rockies avoided suffering their first home shutout of the season with Justin Morneau's solo home run off Jeurys Familia to lead off the ninth.
Posted by Unknown on Sunday, May 4, 2014 - Rating: 4.5
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